Judge Gets Tough In Drug Case

Lengthy Sentences Given For Abduction Of Undercover Officer

A federal judge meted out prison sentences of 23 and 15 years on Friday for two men who overpowered and could have killed an undercover sheriff's deputy during an attempted drug rip-off.

Both sentences exceeded recommended sentences proposed by the U.S. Probation Office under federal guidelines for prison terms.

Chief U.S. District Judge Norman Roettger said the longer prison terms were warranted because the men were prepared to kill the Broward Sheriff's Office deputy.

"The probation office does not sit as the conscience of the community. I do," Roettger told defense attorneys in federal court in Fort Lauderdale.

David Shisoff, 44, of Fort Lauderdale, and David Dellamonica, 31, of Brooklyn, N.Y., were sentenced for their roles in the Oct. 20, 1993, abduction of Deputy Edward Bennett in a Holiday Inn in Hallandale.

Bennett was part of an undercover federal drug task force team investigating a suspected group of marijuana distributors. But when he arrived for a meeting with the suspected distributors, they turned the tables on him, flashing badges and guns and telling him he was under arrest.

What they didn't know was that the man they suspected was a marijuana smuggler was, in fact, an undercover agent wearing a concealed listening device.

Bennett testified that when he entered the room to sell 600 pounds of marijuana he saw Dellamonica rushing toward him, holding up a Drug Enforcement Administration badge and pointing a pistol at his head. He was told he was under arrest, then pushed onto a bed where his arms and legs were bound with duct tape.

"I begged them not to shoot me, literally begged not to kill me," Bennett said.

Then, as they continued to bind him with tape, Bennett worried about a different kind of death.

"I asked them not to tape my mouth and nose so I could breathe."

One of the suspected traffickers said: "I don't give a ... '' At that moment, real DEA agents broke through the door, arrested the men and freed Bennett.

Roettger said he exceeded federal sentencing guidelines because of the brutality of the crime. In his view, he said, the suspects were prepared to kill Bennett.

"The only reason it didn't occur is because the cavalry got there first," Roettger said.

Shisoff, sentenced to 23 years in prison, had a prior criminal history. For Dellamonica it was his first arrest.

After the sentencing Dellamonica's attorney, Rick Freedman of Miami, said he would appeal the 15-year sentence. "I feel the judge was excessive in his sentence. Mr. Dellamonica had never been arrested before in his entire life."

In all, five men participated in the Bennett abduction. All pleaded guilty prior to trial. Two of the defendants, Carlton DePace, 38, and Steven DePace, 40, both of Brooklyn, were sentenced last week. Carlton received 13 years in prison, and Steven got 16 years, 10 months. The last of the defendants, Frederick Miccio, 50, of Brooklyn, is scheduled to be sentenced in September, Assistant U.S. Attorney Lloyd King said.